Milk protein edible film; Solar concentrator breaks down waste; UV oven disinfects

Edible film uses milk protein
USDA researchers have developed an edible film with excellent barrier properties for food packaging that utilizes milk protein. “The protein-based films are powerful oxygen blockers that help prevent food spoilage. When used in packaging, they could prevent food waste during distribution along the food chain,” says research leader Peggy Tomasula.

The primary component in the edible film is milk protein casein. It also contains citrus pectin to strengthen the film as well as to make it more resistant to humidity and high temperatures. The casein-based packaging looks similar to store-bought plastic wrap, but it is less stretchy and is better at blocking oxygen.

“The coatings applications for this product are endless,” says Laetitia Bonnaillie, research chemical engineer at USDA. “We are currently testing applications such as single-serve, edible food wrappers. For instance, individually wrapped cheese sticks use a large proportion of plastic—we would like to fix that.” Because single-serve pouches would need to remain sanitary, they would have to be encased in a larger plastic or paperboard sleeve or container for sale on store shelves to prevent them from getting wet or dirty.

In addition to being used as plastic pouches and wraps, the casein material could be sprayed onto food, such as cereal flakes or bars. Right now, cereals keep their crunch in milk due to a sugar coating. Instead of sugar, food manufacturers could spray on casein-protein coatings to prevent soggy cereal. The spray also could line pizza or other food boxes to keep the grease from seeping into the packaging, or to serve as a lamination step for paper or paperboard food boxes or plastic pouches.

Solar concentrator cleans waste streams
A new clean technology combines concentrated solar energy with UV radiation to break down organic contamination in agriculture waste streams, ponds and industrial sites. Developed by Portland, Ore.-based Focal Technologies, Inc., the technology, called Ray, uses an 8-ft diameter solar concentrating lens combined with a reaction chamber where effluent is exposed to as much as 10,000 BTU/hour and 4,000 WM² of ultraviolet energy.

“Our system can break down a wide range of contaminants, but we are initially focused on remediating E. coli and other harmful bacteria in human or animal waste streams,” said Eric Steinmeyer, CEO of Focal Technologies. “Our paradigm shift is using the sun as a tool for direct application. Ray is not an offset or efficiency boost for processes that can already be accomplished. By focusing the sun directly toward the application, we’re doing things that are very difficult to achieve with fossil fuels, like remediating complex organic contaminants in remote locations.”

The system is self-contained, portable and off-the-grid, so it can be deployed anywhere, including dairies where effluent must be treated to prevent bacterial contamination of streams or to purify wash-water for produce as mandated by new USDA/FDA standards.

Recently, Focal Technologies received a $210,000 grant from Oregon BEST to work with researchers at Oregon State University (OSU). OSU researchers plan to convert an existing test unit into a batch unit, build a new prototype and do testing to establish baselines.

UV light oven disinfects produce
Can an oven that uses UV light become as commonplace in consumers’ homes as microwave ovens? Haiqiang Chen, professor of food science at the University of Delaware, thinks so. “At home, when the fresh produce reaches you, it might not be completely free of foodborne pathogens,” Chen said. “Typically, consumers don’t wash fresh produce if it has been pre-washed, and those who do generally just wash it a couple of times with tap water. There’s been nothing that’s really effective that you can use at home to ensure clean produce, so the idea was to develop something that can be used in the home.”

Chen developed the UV light oven technology and is currently working with the university’s Office of Economic Innovation and Partnerships (OEIP) to patent and commercialize the innovation. The oven will be designed to look like a domestic microwave oven and will be user-friendly, with Chen envisioning that it also could be used in restaurants, cafeterias, hospitals and commercial kitchens. The oven will have a simple control panel to allow users to adjust treatment time and will offer a fixed UV intensity.

“The decontamination comes through two sources, UV and water. The UV will kill pathogenic bacteria and viruses but the bad thing about UV is that it doesn’t penetrate through solids, although it can penetrate through clear water,” Chen said. “The water will wash off the pathogens from a food surface and whenever they get into the water, they will be killed almost immediately.”

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